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ABERDEEN ASSET MANAGEMENT SCOTTISH OPENJuly 11, 2014Justin RoseABERDEEN, SCOTLAND Q. Justin, before we talk about the specifics of your round of play, tell us how different that golf course was, isn't it? JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, that was fun actually today. It's great to see. That's the thing about links golf. I think I said that to you earlier in the week, if you had to choose one course for the rest of your life, it would be a links course, because it can be different every day, and that was fun to see in completely opposite wind today. You had to make your score on the Front 9 today instead of hanging on like you did yesterday. All the holes were different, different bunkers came into play. I had to think a lot. Obviously I hadn't seen the course in this wind yet, so today was definitely a learning round again, but pretty happy to get a round of 68. Q. More difficult in this wind or yesterday's wind? JUSTIN ROSE: I don't know. Looking at maybe the scoring, I haven't really summed it up, I would say more difficult in today's wind, potentially. Yesterday I thought it was incredibly tough, but clearly the guys didn't. There were 7s and 6s and stuff like that. So I think you'll see some guys make some birdies on the Front 9. The par‑5s are playing very easy on the front.  But yeah, there's some tough par‑4s on the Back 9. I did well to hang onto my score basically the last five, six holes. Q. You say that. You made a couple of great up‑and‑downs on 15, 16. How important are those on days like this when you really need to keep saving those pars? JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, absolutely. That was very important. I made a good sort of six, seven footers today. I had one chance at 17 which I missed, but other than that, I putted beautifully on the Back 9. And if I think about my round, which I haven't had a chance to weigh up yet, but yeah, I kept myself in it with some good putts and some good chipping and putting coming in. So that suggests to me the Back 9 was probably tougher. Q. Howard Clyde was waxing Europe about some of the media minds. You hit a couple of 6‑irons and you took his breath away. How well do you feel you're swinging when you just came off a victory? JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah. I came off a victory, and I didn't do much practice for whatever reason last week, and I came here and I felt absolutely horrendous on Wednesday, and the last couple of days I've just been trying to find my feeling again. But I'm beginning to click back into gear. I'm beginning to see good shots. I beginning to feel like I'm going to hit some good shots. That's part of the reason for playing this week is just to work my way back into it for next week, too. Q. Lots of birdies in a round of 68? JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah. Happy with that. Today was a fun day. Beautiful day up here. Opposite wind to yesterday which made it interesting. I haven't played the course in this wind yet. So every shot I was paying attention, having to relearn the golf course. Trying to follow Stephen and Lee a little bit because I know they've played in this wind, and Westy played on Monday in this wind. So I was just paying attention a little bit to what they were doing out there and trying to hit good shots. Q. The Back 9 looked markedly different today. JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, there was some tough golf holes on it, especially, well, I mean 15 was tough today. Yesterday it was a drivable hole, and 14 is a total brut. That's a really, really good golf hole. So yeah, the Back 9 is strong, and if I think about the way I played it, I sort of kept in it with my score with some really good chipping and putting. So yeah, absolutely. The guys might stretch out, Rory might stretch out a little bit on the Front 9 and make a few birdies, but then to hang onto your card coming in is not easy. Q. You're pretty much saving par. It's the beauty of links golf, isn't it? JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, it is. I was just telling Tim that if you had to choose one course the rest of your life, it would be a links course based on what we've seen the last two days. You're hitting completely different clubs into all these greens, so it's been fun. Q. Have you looked at that leaderboard and happy with your position on it? JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah. Absolutely. You know, I was a couple over yesterday early in my round and everybody else seemed to be going low. I was finding the course really, really difficult and wasn't really comfortable with my game, so where I've got to after 36 holes, I'm delighted, yeah. Q. You sound better. Does this mean the hayfever is clearing up a bit? JUSTIN ROSE: No, I'm just more medicated now. Yeah, I definitely had a hard time back home down in Hampshire, and then coming up here. I guess it's more hay. This is true typical hayfever here for sure. Q. Can I ask you what is the main difference in the conditions today compared to yesterday? JUSTIN ROSE: Just 180‑degree wind change, to be honest with you, downwind going out, versus into the wind yesterday, and that makes a world of difference. Q. You're competing for the Scottish Open for the first time in a few years. It looks like you've never been away. JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, no. I really enjoy playing golf, this is golfing country up here. You just gotta look up‑and‑down the coastline. You've got some wonderful courses, and the Scottish Open is a big tournament. Obviously a lot of people use it to warm up for the Open championship, but in its own right it's a great event and we're on a great golf course this here at Royal Aberdeen, so enjoying every minute. Q. We hear Rory say a couple of days ago that this has provided a true test of links golf. Would you agree with that assessment? JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, absolutely. This is a true test. This is as traditional as it gets. Traditional links as it gets, lots of blind shots, lots of shots that make you feel uncomfortable, you're trying to dodge bunkers, and if you dodge one bunker, you're bringing in the next set of bunkers, so that's the thing with links golf. You gotta sort of pick which bunker you're trying to miss, and they are true hazards, so it's very strategic. Q. You got your first win of the year just a week or so ago. Do you feel that everything is coming together at just the right time? JUSTIN ROSE: I've been feeling good for a while but obviously once you get across the finish line and get a win, it just gives you an extra bit of confidence. But yeah, there's a lot of big tournaments to be played in the next couple of months, so winning when I did gave me a nice boost of confidence, and hope to keep it rolling. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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